1. Field of the invention
The present invention relates to a method and device for mechanically suspending the abdominal wall of a patient during a surgical operation, for example during a laparascopic operation.
2. Brief description of the prior art
During a laparascopic operation, the abdomen of the patient is conventionally inflated with carbonic gas (CO.sub.2) to enable displacement of the instruments in the patient's abdominal cavity.
A drawback of this conventional method is that any instruments, such as a catheter, used by the surgeon during the operation must be introduced in the patient's abdominal cavity through a gas-tight trocar to prevent deflating of the abdomen. Therefore, a surgical instrument that cannot be introduced in the abdominal cavity of the patient through such a gas-tight trocar cannot be used during the operation. One skilled in the art can appreciate that this drawback considerably limits the number and type of instruments employed during a laparascopic operation.